The Federal Government and the National Assembly have pledged to strengthen collaboration between federal and state electricity regulators as Nigeria moves towards a decentralised power market.
Stakeholders at a workshop in Abuja on regulatory harmonisation stressed that effective coordination among institutions would be crucial to maintaining a single, efficient electricity market despite the transfer of more responsibilities to states under the Electricity Act.
The Special Adviser to the President on Power and Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Power Sector Reset and Restoration, Rilwan Lanre Babalola, said electricity remains central to industrial growth, job creation and national development.
He urged federal and state institutions to see the reforms as an opportunity for cooperation rather than competition over regulatory powers.
“Electricity Act decentralises aspects of governance. It does not decentralise the physics of electricity,” Babalola said.
“Our networks remain interconnected. Our markets remain interdependent. Our prosperity remains shared. That is why harmonisation is not optional.”
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Power, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, said the legislature would continue to support laws that allow federal and state regulators to perform complementary roles.
“The success of decentralisation should not be measured merely by the number of states that established electricity markets, but by whether Nigeria achieves a coherent, efficient and integrated electricity market,” Abaribe said.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has introduced new guidelines for periodic technical audits of the national transmission network and validation of grid data.
The guidelines, which took effect on July 20, 2026, require comprehensive audits of the 330kV and 132kV transmission networks at least once every five years to improve grid reliability, safety and operational efficiency.
NERC said the framework would provide a standardised process for technical assessments, while requiring transmission operators to provide access to facilities and implement improvement plans based on audit findings.
